Dendritic growth is a common phenomenon during the solidification of alloys, and it has a significant impact on the final microstructure and mechanical properties of the material. This research study investigates the solidification behaviour of quaternary X5CrNi18-10 alloys at thermochemical conditions similar to the laser beam welding (LBW) process. The aim of this investigation is to gain a comprehensive understanding of microstructure evolution at the microscale and their correlation with the macroscopic welding process conditions. To achieve this, a combined approach using the CALculation of PHAse Diagrams (CALPHAD) database and phase-field simulations is employed. Based on the CALPHAD-derived Gibbs energy functions, phase-field simulations are performed to simulate the solidification with dendritic/cellular morphology. The study focuses on solidification microstructure evolution influenced by process conditions such as thermal gradient and LBW velocity at steady-state conditions. By analysing the solidification microstructure morphology in 2D, valuable insights into the solidification kinetics and the influence of local thermal conditions on dendritic growth are obtained. Furthermore, the micro-segregation behaviour of key alloying elements during solidification in the mushy zone is explored. This study will help to enhance the understanding of dendritic solidification in this welding process, facilitating the optimisation of process parameters for improved mechanical properties.

Individuals with untreated isolated GH deficiency (IGHD) due to a mutation in the GHRH receptor gene from Itabaianinha Brazil have increased insulin sensitivity, normal life expectancy, and an extended health span, i.e. the period of life free from disabilities. We hypothesize that their prolonged health span is accompanied by a delayed cognitive decline in senescence. To test this hypothesis, we have administered the Literacy-Independent Cognitive Assessment (LICA) to 15 IGHD individuals aged over 50 years and 15 controls matched by age, sex, years of education, and percentage of illiteracy. All individuals were negative for HIV and syphilis serology, and there were no differences in serum levels of folate, vitamin B12 and TSH between the two groups, while free T4 was higher in the IGHD group. IGHD subjects had a higher total LICA score than controls, 215 (22.7) vs 204.2 (18.1), without reaching statistical significance. Scores of memory, visuoconstruction, language and calculation were similar between the two groups, with better attention (9.5 (1.4) vs 8.3 (1.1), P = 0.01) and executive function (38.3 (4.8) vs 35.1 (2.5), P = 0.03) scores in IGHD. MANCOVA revealed that group (but no age) had a significant effect on the LICA variables (partial eta squared of 0.455, power of 0.812, P = 0.02). This effect is verified on attention (partial eta squared 0.216, power of 0.749, P = 0.01) and executive function (partial eta squared 0.154, power of 0.570, P = 0.03. In conclusion, IGHD in senescence is associated with similar total cognitive performance but better attention and executive function than controls.

Background:Glucocorticoids increase fear extinction in preclinical and human studies. Endogenous cortisol might influence who will benefit from exposure therapy in anxiety-spectrum disorders. Methods:To investigate the impact of cortisol levels on within-session habituation of distress - a measure of success of exposure therapy - in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) fifty-one OCD patients were studied during their stressful first cognitive-behavioral exposure therapy session with response prevention. Subjective units of distress, salivary cortisol, and salivary dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) were measured repeatedly before and during this afternoon session. Results:No significant association of within-session habituation of distress and cortisol level during exposure was found. Calculating with the cortisol/DHEA ratio, similar results emerged. Conclusion:Studies using endogenous diurnal fluctuation of cortisol and studies with administration of exogenous cortisol are needed to test whether glucocorticoids can augment exposure session outcome.

The growth of two‐phase eutectic colonies is a frequently observed phenomenon in the microstructure of directionally solidified ternary alloys. The formation of these macroscopic structures is driven by microscopic instabilities, caused by minor component impurities, diffusing into the liquid from the two solidifying phases. Due to an accumulation of this impurity component, a morphological instability at the eutectic front leads to the formation of eutectic colonies. In this work, the phase‐field method is used to investigate the influence of different melt composition and hence of the adjusting phase fractions on the growth of eutectic colonies. For this purpose, specially designed model systems, N‐xA‐yC, with defined phase fractions of the solids are generated on the basis of the high performance material NiAl‐34Cr. Based on these models, the evolution of eutectic colonies is investigated in two‐ and three‐dimensional (3D) large‐scale simulations with up to 3⋅10 9 cells. To perform these highly computationally intense large‐scale 3D simulations, the computational framework used is optimized in several layers. The results obtained show the influence of the melt composition on the formation and characteristics of the evolved eutectic colonies and provide new insights into the formation of these macroscopic structures.

Objectives: Individuals with congenital isolated growth hormone deficiency (IGHD) in Northeastern Brazil have a normal lifespan with a prolonged healthspan. We hypothesize that their increased healthspan is accompanied by a reduced cognitive decline during aging. We have recently shown that these individuals have a similar total cognitive function and better attention and executive function than controls. These data were obtained using a Portuguese version of the Literacy Independent Cognitive Assessment (LICA) instrument, whose translation to facilitate cognitive research in Portuguese- speaking countries is described here. Subjects and methods: In the first stage, a psychologist and a psychiatrist translated the LICA instrument from English into Portuguese, and an English teacher proofread the translation. The second stage included its synthesis and cultural adaptation, carried out by Brazilian authors, and changes in some words and images. The third stage involved an evaluation round with two referees (independent psychologists). The fourth stage involved a back translation of the instrument, which demonstrated > 95% agreement with the original version. The fifth stage included a study to verify the understanding of the questionnaire by responders. In the sixth stage, an endocrinologist and a psychiatrist approved the final Portuguese version of the instrument, which was then administered to 15 individuals with IGHD and 15 controls older than 50 years. Results: The LICA instrument was applied 59 times (5 times in the pilot study, 24 in the variability studies, and 30 in the experimental step). The interobserver and intraobserver variabilities were 99% and 96%, respectively. Cronbach's alpha was 0.76, indicating good reliability. The mean (+/- standard deviation) duration of the application was 39 +/- 8.6 and 48.5 +/- 5.8 minutes in literate and illiterate individuals, respectively. Conclusion:The The Portuguese version of the LICA instrument was valuable for the cognitive assessment of individuals with Itabaianinha syndrome.

Individuals with isolated GH deficiency (IGHD) due to a mutation in the GHRH receptor gene have a normal life expectancy and above 50 years of age, similar total cognitive performance, with better attention and executive function than controls. Our objectives were to evaluate their brain morphometry and brain aging using MRI. Thirteen IGHD and 14 controls matched by age, sex, and education, were enrolled. Quantitative volumetric data and cortical thickness were obtained by automatic segmentation using Freesurfer software. The volume of each brain region was normalized by the intracranial volume. The difference between the predicted brain age estimated by MRI using a trained neuronal network, and the chronological age, was obtained. p < 0.005 was considered significant and 0.005 < p < 0.05 as a suggestive evidence of difference. In IGHD, most absolute values of cortical thickness and regional brain volumes were similar to controls, but normalized volumes were greater in the white matter in the frontal pole and in the insula bilaterally, and in the gray matter, in the right insula and in left Caudate (p < 0.005 for all comparisons) We also noticed suggestive evidence of a larger volume in IGHD in left thalamus (p = 0.006), right thalamus (p = 0.025), right caudate (p = 0.046) and right putamen (p = 0.013). Predicted brain ages were similar between groups. IGHD is primarily associated with similar absolute brain measurements, and a set of larger normalized volumes, and does not appear to alter the process of brain aging.

The directionally solidified eutectic alloy NiAl-(Cr,Mo) is a promising candidate for structural applications at high temperatures, due to its increased creep resistance compared to its single phase B2ordered NiAl counterpart. This system yields an eutectic trough connecting the invariant reactions of the ternary alloys NiAl-Cr and NiAl-Mo. During directional solidification (DS) along this trough the evolved microstructures of the two-phase eutectic is changing from fibrous to lamellar and back to fibrous morphology while increasing and decreasing the amounts of Mo and Cr, respectively. To investigate these effects in the morphology, the phase-field method has proven to be predestined in the last decades. However, as the modeling of quaternary systems is challenging for the simulation with a grand potential based phase-field model, the focus of this work is on the generation of a material model for one defined compound namely NiAl-31Cr-3Mo. The modeling is validated by investigating the microstructure evolution in two- and three-dimensional simulations of the DS process for two different growth velocities and by investigating their undercooling spacing relationships. The evolving microstructures obtained from three-dimensional large-scale simulations are presented and validated with corresponding micrographs from scanning electron microscopy (SEM) of directionally solidified samples with the same growth velocities. The simulation results show the theoretically expected behaviors and are in qualitative and quantitative accordance with DS experiments. The study of NiAl-31Cr-3Mo serves as the basis for a comprehensive data-driven analysis of microstructure properties and system quantities of the entire quaternary material NiAl-(Cr,Mo). With this, an accelerated design of advanced materials is promoted.

Searchable abstracts of presentations at key conferences in endocrinology ISSN 1470-3947 (print) | ISSN 1479-6848 (online)

Solidification is an important process in many alloy processing routes. The solidified microstructure of alloys is usually made up of dendrites, eutectics or a combination of both. The evolving morphologies are largely determined by the solidification process and thus many materials properties are dependent on the processing conditions. While the growth of either type of microstructure is well-investigated, there is little information on the coupled growth of both microstructures. This work aims to close this gap by formulating a phase-field model capable of reproducing dendritic, eutectic as well as dendritic-eutectic growth. Following this, two-dimensional simulations are conducted which show all three types of microstructures depending on the composition and processing conditions. The effect of the dendritic-eutectic growth on the microstructural lengths, which determine materials properties, is investigated and the morphological hysteresis between eutectic growth and dendritic-eutectic growth is studied by employing solidification velocity jumps. Further, the influence of primary crystallization is investigated in large-scale two-dimensional simulations. Finally, qualitative three-dimensional simulations are conducted to test for morphological changes in the eutectic.

Searchable abstracts of presentations at key conferences in endocrinology ISSN 1470-3947 (print) | ISSN 1479-6848 (online)

The self-propagating reaction in binary Al/Ru multilayers with two different bilayer thicknesses (89 and 178 nm, respectively) forming single-phase AlRu intermetallic compound is investigated experimentally and by means of phase-field simulations. Experimentally, the time-temperature evolution in free-standing films was recorded with a high-speed pyrometer, and the resulting microstructure was determined from electron backscatter diffraction measurements. The phase-field model is constructed based on the minimization of the grand potentials for which the required thermodynamic data are taken from the Calphad database. The simulation of the reaction and subsequent AlRu grain growth starts from Al-rich and Ru-rich layer fillings. After the formation of the AlRu phase is complete, the grain growth during cooling is simulated based on the experimentally recorded time-temperature curves. Finally, the resulting grain sizes obtained from the simulation are found to be in good agreement with the experimental results. Furthermore, it is shown that the final grain sizes in both simulations and experiments depend on the initial bilayer thicknesses.

Repeated panic attacks are the core symptom of panic disorder and severely stressful for patients. Additional to the psychological response, the physiological symptoms are an important aspect of the experienced panic. However, data on the extent of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA)-axis activation during panic attacks is inconsistent. Therefore, in the present study, we aimed at investigating the stress-axis activity in more detail by including Copeptin (CoP) as a stable surrogate parameter for the vasopressinergic hypothalamic activity during experimentally induced panic attacks in healthy adults (N = 21). During a placebo-controlled panic challenge with 35% CO2 compared to normal air inhalation, we measured CoP and the peripheral effector hormones Adrenocorticotropic Releasing Hormone (ACTH) and cortisol in plasma along with the psychological response to panic anxiety. We analyzed hormonal secretion patterns, their correlations and individual panic ratings over time and explored differences between female and male participants. We found a significant CO2-induced increase of CoP plasma levels and psychological panic symptoms after CO2-administration, while no positive correlations of CoP levels with the peripheral HPA-axis hormones and with panic symptoms were present. No differences be-tween female and male participants concerning their psychological response nor their baseline CoP levels, the release of CoP or its increase during the experiment were found. CoP could be a sensitive indicator for an or-ganism's physiologic acute hypothalamic response during stress and panic attacks.

For the first time, the experimental processing condition of a rotating directional solidification is simulated in this work, by means of a grand-potential-based phase-field model. To simulate the rotating directional solidification, a new simulation setup with a rotating temperature field is introduced. The newly developed configuration can be beneficent for a more precise study of the ongoing adjustment mechanisms during temperature gradient controlled solidification processes. Ad hoc, the solidification of the ternary eutectic system Bi-In-Sn with three distinct solid phases α,β,δ is studied in this paper. For this system, accurate in situ observations of both directional and rotating directional solidification experiments exist, which makes the system favorable for the investigation. The two-dimensional simulation studies are performed for both solidification processes, considering the reported 2D patterns in the steady state growth of the bulk samples. The desired αβαδ phase ordering repeat unit is obtained within both simulation types. By considering anisotropy of the interfacial energies, experimentally reported tilted lamellae with respect to normal vectors of the solidification front, as well as predominant role of αβ anisotropy in tilting phenomenon, are observed. The results are validated by using the Jackson–Hunt analysis and by comparing with the existing experimental data. The convincing agreements indicate the applicability of the introduced method.

To meet the requirements of modern technical and scientific applications, the development and investigation of high-performance materials with locally defined properties gets more and more into focus of actual research. These materials often contain phases with at least one stoichiometric component. To investigate such materials within grand potential-based phase-field simulations, a specialized method is needed, which allows to model the required Gibbs energy formulations for the stoichiometric phases. In this work, a modeling approach is introduced, based on the equilibrium conditions of the involved phases, to generate a Gibbs energy formulation for the stoichiometric (Nb,Ti)3Si phase in Nb-Si-Ti. With this formulation, the eutectic reaction in the ternary NbSi-10Ti system is investigated within two- and three-dimensional phase-field simulations, with eutectic and off-eutectic melt compositions. The solidified microstructures are qualitatively assessed by measuring the average front undercoolings, the adjusting phase fractions and the concentrations during the simulations. The validation of the results shows the ability of the generated material model to simulate the obtained system and proves the suitability of the presented approach to model stoichiometric phases.

Childhood maltreatment is a common phenomenon in various psychiatric disorders. Accordingly, patients with disorders from the schizophrenia spectrum (SSD) appear to have high prevalence rates of childhood maltreatment. However, the interpretation and comparability of prevalence rates is impeded by methodological weaknesses and differences such as measures and thresholds used in previous studies. Therefore, we aimed to provide and compare systematically captured data on prevalence rates of all common types of childhood maltreatment in patients with SSD using a standardized and well-established questionnaire and the most frequently used thresholds. The sample consisted of 48 patients with a primary diagnosis of SSD. 58.3–77.1% of the sample experienced at least one type of childhood maltreatment. Prevalence rates for physical abuse, physical neglect, and emotional abuse were dependent on the thresholds used, while equal rates were found for emotional neglect and sexual abuse. Physical neglect (46–67%), and emotional abuse (44–48%) were most commonly reported, followed by emotional neglect (38%), physical abuse (25–38%), and sexual abuse (25%). Additionally, high levels of peer victimization were reported by SSD patients. It appears that childhood maltreatment is a common phenomenon in SSD, even though methodological details, especially cut-off scores, have a substantial impact on the prevalence rates that are determined. Therefore, the methodology of studies should be closely examined when drawing conclusions from presented prevalence rates.

In order to approximate Gibbs energy functions, a semi-automated framework is introduced for binary and ternary material systems, using Calphad databases. To generate Gibbs energy formulations by means of second-order polynomials, the framework includes a precise approach. Furthermore, an optional extensional step enables the modeling of systems in which a direct generation leads to the unsatisfactory results in the representation of the thermodynamics. Furthermore, an optional extensional step enables the modeling of systems, in which a direct generation leads to the unsatisfactory results, when representing the thermodynamics. Within this extension, the commonly generated functions are modified to satisfy the equilibrium conditions in the observed material systems, leading to a better correlation with thermodynamic databases. The generated Gibbs energy formulations are verified by recalculating the equilibrium concentrations of the phases and rebuilding the phase diagrams in the considered concentration and temperature ranges, prior to the simulation studies. For all comparisons, a close match is achieved between the results and the Calphad databases. As practical examples of the method, phase-field simulation studies for the directional solidification of the binary Ni–35Mo and the ternary NiAl–10Mo eutectic systems are performed. Good agreements between the simulation results and the reported theoretical and experimental studies from literature are found, which indicates the applicability of the presented approaches.

Objective: An acute anxiolytic-like effect of atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) has been demonstrated in several preclinical and clinical studies. In a so far singular study (Herrmann-Lingen et al., 2003), patients with congestive heart failure, who pathognomonicly display increased plasma ANP, showed a significant inverse association of anxiety symptoms and pro-ANP levels, giving rise to speculations about ANP as an endogenous anxiolytic. We tried to replicate and extend this preliminary finding. Methods: In 56 patients suffering from heart failure with reduced left ventricular ejection fraction we measured ANP, mid-regional pro-ANP (MR-proANP) and cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) as plasma parameters of ANP functioning and characterized anxiety symptoms using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and in addition the State Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) for state anxiety. Spearman rank correlation coefficients were calculated. Results: None of our plasma ANP parameters showed a significant association with anxiety symptoms as per HADS ratings. The same picture emerged with STAI state anxiety. ANP, MR-proANP and cGMP significantly correlated with each other. Conclusion: In another sample of patients with heart failure we were unable to replicate previous and preliminary cross-sectional findings of low anxiety in subjects with high plasma pro-ANP. Direct measurement of effector hormone ANP and its second messenger as well did not support our hypothesis. Chronically elevated ANP in heart failure might attenuate its potential anxiolytic effects. Longitudinal studies experimentally increasing ANP levels in anxious heart failure patients are needed to test if this approach has clinical psychotropic utility.